


Cursed

by baisexual_unicorn



Series: Cursed [1]
Category: World of Warcraft
Genre: Abuse, Alternate Canon, Alternate Universe, Angst, Animal Abuse, Animal Death, Anxiety, Beds, Clothing, Coercion, Comfort, Death, Denathrius - Freeform, Feelings, Feels, Female Characters, Flirting, Fluff, Gore, Injury, I’m sorry, Language, Lord Chamberlain - Freeform, Love, One Shot, Original Character(s), Other, Panic, Pining, Pre-Canon, Romance, Royalty, Secrets, Shadowlands, Sorry Not Sorry, Tension, Theotar, Torture, Trauma, World of Warcraft - Freeform, World of Warcraft: Shadowlands, Wow, animal cruelty
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-12-10
Updated: 2020-12-10
Packaged: 2021-03-09 21:47:33
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,799
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27983298
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/baisexual_unicorn/pseuds/baisexual_unicorn
Summary: A little thing I decided to write now that Shadowlands is out.Odette is not the ideal woman nobles want to marry. A promiscuous spinster, she would rather spend her time in bed with other venthyr than tie herself down to one person. But after a failed party threatens to bring down the family name and status, the young lady is swiftly sold off to a man that she didn’t choose, and now she must either break free or use this opportunity to her advantage.
Series: Cursed [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2049555
Comments: 1
Kudos: 10
Collections: World of Warcraft Library





	Cursed

**Author's Note:**

> A few things to keep in mind while reading:
> 
> My other story is on hiatus because I have better expansions to write about now
> 
> This series will jump between timelines. Before the events in Shadowlands, after said events, during said events
> 
> This is NONCANONICAL. Relationships will not match the canonical storyline of Shadowlands, lord will be fudged a bit, etc
> 
> There are a lot of triggers to consider before reading this piece. Please see the tags for additional information

“This party is  _ not  _ what they told us it would be.”

Gentle ball music played lightly in the background while the nearby prattle of noble venthyr pierced the ears of Lady Odette, who was sipping her wine and keeping mostly to herself as she eavesdropped. They weren’t wrong: this party was terrible. Nothing to show for entertainment, not one person handsome enough to be worthy of a dance, limited supplies of alcohol. It was quite a dreary event, to be honest. Unfortunately, this entire thing was supposed to be for her.

There were several well-known nobles in attendance, but none in high enough status for Odette’s parents to even be remotely interested in as a potential husband. Things were looking very bleak for this noble and soon-to-be outcast family. The young lady scanned the room, desperately hoping to find someone, anyone, that she could bear to marry and save her family from the ashes, but it appeared that the gathering was severely lacking in high-class bachelors. 

Odette paused her sipping to attend to another noble who had just approached her. 

“I cannot even begin to understand how disappointed you must feel,” the woman forced, clearly wanting nothing more than to be anywhere but where she was now. 

“It is quite sad, really,” the young lady agreed. “You would think there’d at least be a cleansing or two.”

The other noble appeared shocked, since she was trying to be snarky and was met with acceptance. The rumors about this spunky little creature were true. She scoffed. “And you have no quarrel with the poor state of your family? The way they fail to represent you?”

Odette shrugged. “It’s pitiful and I hate it, but what can I do?”

“Nothing will save your soul.” With that, the noble walked off, her nose high in the air. 

“Don’t let their cruel words hurt you, my lady.”

There was no time to pause to even blink and someone was already at her side once more. Quite annoying, she thought silently before turning to entertain her new companion. 

It was another venthyr noble, one that was very familiar across the families and ranks. A very recognizable man indeed, as he never drank alcohol or spirits. Instead, he always sported a teacup, sipping away and mingling amongst the others, trying to annoy them. He must’ve recently been cast out from the major groups and made his way yonder. 

“What the rich think never bothers me,” Odette replied, then snapping her fingers, she summoned a dredger for more wine. As it filled her glass heartily, the duke stayed firmly put.

“I’m aware of your courtly opinions, my lady. Which is why I find you most enticing.”

_ Theotar. _ The name rang in Odette’s head, a strict warning from her mother and father.  _ He’s mad, Odette, and nothing but trouble _ .

One thing was certain: he didn’t look mad. He was dressed as elegantly as any venthyr noble, with his hair done up like the rest of his kind. When he smiled at her, his fangs glistened with saliva in the candlelight, and they appeared well cared for. It was hard to decipher what exactly made him mad.

The lady’s red eyes wandered to the cup of tea the duke was drinking from, causing the man to take a sip and grin. “I don’t particularly enjoy alcohol. The taste is far too bitter for me. I much prefer the warmth of a hot cup of tea.” Maybe they thought him mad because he avoided alcohol like a plague. Not very customary for nobles and aristocrats. The only thing that made anyone tolerate each other to gossip was the best of wine, which was again, severely lacking here. 

“What would you have done differently, my lady?” The question threw her off, and Odette had to struggle to not laugh.

“I hate big parties like this. I don’t like the attention.”

There were several sets of venthyr gazes that were locked on the young lady, their whispers and murmuring kept secret from her. This was becoming extremely pathetic. 

“I can understand why,” Theotar answered with a chuckle. “But if you could be in charge of this mess, what would you do differently?”

Whether this was the duke trying to learn more about her or a desperate attempt to create any sort of conversation was beyond Odette’s knowledge, but she decided to humor the poor venthyr anyways. 

“The one thing every party has that this one doesn’t is entertainment. Look around.” She gave him a moment to do so. “We aren’t even cleansing souls here, a favorite pastime at any noble party. Yet my parents think such things are barbaric.”

“You certainly do like to hold up traditions,” Theotar commented over his teacup. 

“That’s what gives everyone their status around here. And my parents wonder why we’re losing our place and wealth.”

Silence passed between them, before it was abruptly broken by the duke. 

“I have ways of entertaining young ladies.”

Odette choked on her wine, taken over by a red-spittled coughing fit. As soon as she had found her breath and recovered, she paused and looked the duke over. 

“I see now why they call you mad.”

“It’s a shame, really, but what manners would I have if I didn’t offer?”

“Your proposal implies that you have no manners.” The lady smiled and discarded her wine glass on a nearby end table. “Care to freshen up your tea? I could go for a cup myself.”

Theotar chuckled. “Your words fill me with so much glee. I should love to pour my lady a hot cup of tea.”

Odette felt the slightest touch of a hand at her lower back, and she allowed it to very carefully push her along to where a table had been set up with one teapot, a sugar and a creamer dish, and a meager amount of teacups. Currently there were two, and she knew Theotar had one, and suddenly she was filled with dread at the thought of a missing cup. The little things were starting to get to her, because she would never hear the end of it after the partygoers cleared out. Standing still and quiet, the lady watched her companion duke fill a cup with the hot, black substance within, her eyes down and lost in its ebony depths as it was handed to her. She sipped in silence, trying her best to keep her eyes on anything but the duke. Something within her stirred, something she hadn’t felt in a long time, but she knew exactly what it was. 

_ Desire _ .

Her thoughts were interrupted by another figure waltzing up to the couple, and as soon as Odette’s realized who it was, the gnawing feeling in her gut quickly turned to dread. It was her mother, and she was fuming. 

Before she could react, Odette was being yanked away from the table and off into a darker, quieter part of the home, away from prying eyes and ears. 

“What do you think you’re doing?!” her mother hissed. “You were told to stay away from that wretch!”

“If you don’t like it, then why is he here?” Odette argued. She wasn’t about to let the one hope of fun in her night slip through her fingers. The teacup she was holding was also voluntarily removed from the claws holding it, causing some to splash out the sides and onto the floor.

“Because it would look bad if we didn’t.”

Odette frowned. “You throw a shitty party to try and get some face back, and then you have the audacity to sit here and tell me who I can and can’t mingle with? Bullshit.” She tried to walk passed her mom, but this matriarch was a little harder to sway than that. 

“I do what I must for this family. Besides, it won’t be long before inviting the mad duke results in a loss of ‘face’.” Odette’s mother added air quotes to the last word, which she spat out with disdain. “You will go out there and find someone to converse with that is  _ not _ the mad duke, or you can kiss your night goodbye, along with your comfy lifestyle.” She looked down at her child, anger and disgust in her eyes, until Odette finally conceded and abandoned her battle. Her footsteps echoed through the balls while she strode back towards the party, which was actually starting to liven up. 

Rather than bored nobles and aristocrats drueling against the walls, there was a circle of venthyr gathered at the center of the ballroom, their attention stuck on whatever they surrounded. Before venturing in to see what the hustle and bustle was, Odette looked around the area and grew a tad upset when she didn’t see Theotar lurking around. She desperately wanted to see him, but an unusual sound distracted her. The lady pushed her way through, only to be met with a horrible sight standing at the center of the circle. 

It was a small vulpin, clearly from Ardenweald, a terrified expression plastered across its face. It’s body language mirrored this, hunched as close to the ground as it could get, tail between its legs, and ears flat against its head. It wasn’t a mystery why this animal was here. It was a spectacle. It was something her parents had snagged as their own sick form of entertainment. What was even worse was that it was working. As Odette stood, horrified by the display, the other venthyr laughed and gawked, even picking and pulling some of its anima. As they did, it screeched out in pain, calling for someone to save it. It was a haunting sound, and the more she heard it, the more Odette was starting to lose it. Lose herself. Lose her mind.

Attacking the creature only made others want to join in, and soon the vulpin was writhing on the ground. It couldn’t even look up, but Odette could see the pain and agony in its closed eyes. Without even knowing it, she was rushing to the center. All sound was gone and she couldn’t hear anything, but that didn’t stop her from putting herself in the way of the evil that tortured it. With arms wrapped around its glittering white fur, she hid it from view until another had barged into the center. This time it was her father. 

He was livid, for sure, but he didn’t say anything as he picked Odette up, the dying vulpin in her arms. The crowd watched while the young lady was dragged away by her arm, and once the two were out of the prying eyes of the guests, the lord of the house snatched the Ardenweald creature from his sobbing child, making quick work of snapping its neck and discarding it on the ground in a lifeless heap. This shut Odette up very quickly as well as made her give up fighting immediately. He was not happy, meaning neither was her mother, and when they were both mad, no one had any fun. Especially not Odette. The only thing she could do was silently wish she had never left the tea table with the mad duke. 

The journey ended at the door to Odette’s room, which was promptly flung open to allow the lord to shove her inside. Closing the door behind him, Odette’s father loomed over her, his ruby eyes aflame with a scathing anger.

“How  _ dare  _ you,” the man hissed down at his offspring, who was cowering on her bed. Odette liked to believe that she was strong and spunky for a young lady, but she feared nothing more than the wrath of her parents. “You have the audacity to even be seen with a wretch like… like…  _ the mad duke _ , then you engage in a vile act of interrupting the only entertainment we could get our hands on-“

“What they were doing was  _ not  _ entertainment,” interrupted the lady. “What do you think the Fae would say of they saw that horrible spectacle?”

“They would think nothing of it, because we are the venthyr.”

Odette didn’t buy that for a second. If anything, the Fae ignored stuff like this because they either didn’t know or because they were afraid. 

A heavy sigh came from deep within her father’s chest. “Why would you even want to ruin this, Odette? This is for you. So that you can have the best future possible.”

“I don’t want any of this.”

“Well what you want doesn’t matter when you have a status like yours. Our family is dying, soon to be thrown to the light, and you’re the only thing we have that can save us from imminent destruction. It is your duty to this family and to the master.”

This was everything she already knew, and yet she was sitting and hearing it again anyways.  _ Our family is noble and becoming poor. You can’t spend your entire life as a spinster. You must marry another rich venthyr to save our name _ . Venthyr didn’t really even marry each other. They just made more venthyr. It wasn’t something that never happened, but it was a rare occurrence. It was generally only done to secure a union and stop a family from dying out. But everyone knew it wouldn’t work this late in the lady’s life. 

Not only was it too late, but Odette wasn’t really someone men wanted to be with for eternity. Odette had several secrets, some of which she had to keep to herself or her parents would surely cast her out. And one of those secrets explained why it was so hard for them to find their child a proper mate: she’d been around. One of her favorite pastimes was sharing a bed with a few venthyr at a time, and they certainly loved it, too. Thankfully, those who were lucky enough to be graced with the lady’s fair nakedness kept their conquests to themselves, but that didn’t stop the occasional sneer from a past lover whenever they crossed paths. Her parents were none the wiser, but they did notice these things. There were several times where her mother or father would ask if she knew why people stared at her, and for years she was able to shrug it off. 

It was a miracle they hadn’t figured it out. No one wants Odette because she sleeps around. She’s not faithful. She’s not worth it. There’s no need to marry her if she’ll just join you in your chambers if you ask nicely enough. Odette began to wonder how many of the partygoers left after the scene she caused. It wasn’t until her father snapped her name at her did her attention return to him. 

“You’re not even listening!”

She’d about had all she could take, and that was saying something, so she stood her ground and barked right back. 

“I don’t want to listen. This would probably be a lot easier for you if you’d let me choose who I want! Let me do this at my own pace! Instead, you and mom just want to rush me into something that probably won’t even work. What if you set me up with someone that kills me?”

“You’re being ridiculous, Odette.”

“I am not! This isn’t even traditional, and that’s all you two care about these days! It’s always about tradition, isn’t it? So why are you trying to marry off? Don’t sit here and try to marry me off to a stranger just because you failed at your job.”

That was enough to put the lord over the edge and strike her across the face. But she didn’t cry or scream or fight back. She took it and kept silent. 

“You will learn your place, child. You will do as you're told: serve your family and your people. I will not lose everything I have to a selfish daughter who will let anyone drink from her cup.”

With that, the lord left. So they did know. Or at least he knew. Somehow, her father had learned her big secret. Now it sat in the mind of her father, along with the plethora of other things that made Odette practically unmarriable. And while he was off thinking about that, Odette was stuck in her room, thinking about the only highlight from her night. 

Theotar. 

She wondered if she’d ever see him again. Bringing a fair hand to her face, she wiped the tears from her cheeks and exhaled into the cold air of her chambers. Even if she only had the briefest of moments to talk to him, it was the best couple of moments she’d had in awhile. She barely knew the mad duke, yet she ached for more time with him. 

What was it that she longed for? Was it the fact that he was an outcast like her? He wasn’t that much of a vagabond; he just didn’t like to drink alcohol and would much prefer to exist without a shirt on. Which, technically, could be considered enough to banish one from the aristocratic world of Revendreth. But to Odette, it was a scarce encounter to enjoy. 

As she sat in her room with nothing but her thoughts and fantasies, the winds outside began to pick up. The nude tree branches scratched at her window panes, masking the additional sounds of nails on the glass as well. It all continued for a considerable amount of time before the wind finally stopped long enough for the typing lady to hear the extra tapping and rasping.

When she looked up from her feet at the window, she was more than surprised - and excited - to find herself face-to-face with none other than the mad duke, Theotar. Odette wasted no time scrambling to the window so that she could let him in, which he did with ease. 

“This isn’t the first time you’ve climbed through a lady’s window, is it, my lord?” Odette’s voice was coy and her expression suggestive, as they always were whenever she meant to engage in carnal activities.

“Please, my beautiful bat,” he cooed back in reply, “call me Theotar. I am no lord, not by these fool’s standards.” Silence passed before the mad duke continued somberly. “I saw what happened in the ballroom.”

Odette frowned and averted her gaze. “Yea, using animals as entertainment at parties is… not something I like very much.”

“I’m so sorry.”

“For what?”

The duke looked around the room, then made himself comfortable on the bed. “That you have to endure so much heartache. I hate to see a young lady so delightful look so dismayed.”

The duke really had a way with words. Odette suddenly found herself squirming internally, begging for more of the sweet sounds to grace her ears. Without even knowing it, she’d joined the duke on her bed to better look into his glowing white eyes while they chatted. The words were just enrapturing enough to get her riled up, provoking her to inch her way closer and lean in a bit further with each syllable passing over his lips. It was a wonderful effect and Odette prayed that it continued further.

A quick spark of heat shot through the young lady’s skin as she felt the tender contact of a finger lifting her chin.

“The feeling that eats at my heart when a woman is in despair is a pain I cannot stand, and I’m moved to do whatever it takes to end that suffering.”

The venthyr were but a breath away from each other at this point, but sadly their moment was ruined by a collective jolt at the sound of heels crossing the hall towards the bedroom. Silence followed, then a small gasp from Odette when the key could be heard opening the lock. 

“I’m afraid that’s my queue, my lady. But rest assured that you have a special place in my world. I will return to you, Odette.” After saying his goodbye, the mad duke was jumping back down the window from whence he came.

Leaving Odette alone once more to face her next visitor: her mother. 

The lady of the house was a lot less red in the face than her husband, but her daughter knew that deep within her rigid mother was an unseen fury. The woman wouldn’t let it show, however, and took the place that was once occupied by Theotar. There was no sigh, no yelling, no talking. Only silence. 

And then her mother spoke. 

“We will not discuss your behavior tonight. We are going to forget that tonight ever happened.”

This was very unusual for this lady venthyr. Usually, her mother would have her stripped and beaten for this kind of thing, but now? Now she wanted to act like there wasn’t even a party to ruin. When Odette didn’t say anything, her mother continued. 

“We have been given a second chance, and this time we’ll be having a special guest. You will know you’re place before next weekend, or you’ll be sent out to the rabid hounds.”

And that was it. Her mother left, locked the door behind her, and the rest of the night passed in silence. Theotar did not return to the young lady’s bedroom, and no one came to check on her. She only sat on her bed in the darkness, not even leaving as the days went on, dreading the day that she would learn who the “special guest” could be.

—————————————————————

No matter how much time Odette spent wracking her brain about the party’s guest, she couldn’t think of anyone who would spend a single moment agreeing to come to one of these parties. It was roughly the same as the last one, except worse because now everyone had been expecting a lame get-together. And just like last time, guests turned to conversation with Odette about how embarrassing this must be for her. 

“I thought there was supposed to be some great noble coming to this disaster,” said one to the young lady halfway through the evening.

“That’s what I thought as well,” came her dry response, hating the repetitiveness of her parent’s so-called “parties”.

Looking around didn’t reveal the two, shockingly. Last weekend, they were at least trying to roam around and make up for what they lacked. Now they were completely gone, missing from the room and probably the house entirely. Where could they have gone? Did their shame finally get the best of them? Maybe she would get lucky and they died out back trying to fenangle a way to fix this and now she was lady  _ and  _ lord of the house.

After about five minutes, Odette learned that luck was absolutely  _ NOT  _ on her side tonight. 

Not only did her parents saunter smugly through the ballroom doors, they were flanked by two very cordial-looking venthyr wearing the robes and sigils of their master.  _ The _ Master. Which could only mean one thing. 

The special guest was none other than Sire Denathrius. 

How in all of the Shadowlands Odette’s parents pulled this off was far beyond her knowledge, but after the heralding from his entourage ended, the man was standing before the house, in the flesh, for all of the party to see. It was dead silent for a minute or two before the entire room bowed before their Master, but Odette slinked away around a corner to observe without being seen.

Odette also noticed that the Lord Chamberlain was accompanying the Sire, which was even more confusing than just having Denathrius in the house. His decrepit and jagged features ran chills down her spine, and he looked less than pleased to be in the presence of such distaste and boredom. 

The lady of the house was the first to speak. 

“Master, we have been eagerly awaiting your arrival-“

Speaking out of turn earned her a nasty look from Lord Chamberlain, shutting her up immediately until it was her turn to talk. 

“I am here for only one thing. Bring me your daughter.”

There was more silence, and then Odette’s father pushed his “better half” out towards the others, raising his brow and mouthing  _ go find her _ . It didn’t take long for her mother to turn the corner and run into who she was looking for, and after grabbing Odette’s arm, she yanked her from her hiding spot and into the light, presented before the Master’s viewing pleasure. It wasn’t until her child was in the light that she was able to look the young lady up and down. 

Odette had chosen quite the provocative piece to wear for the night, not sure how to look for the “guest” because she didn’t know who it was, so she went with the most enticing thing she owned: a black gown that clung to her features so tightly that every line and curve was visible to the naked eye. The center was cut out, save for the pattern of two silky bats which flew up the sides of her torso. The look was finished off with blood red jewels, sparkling and highlighting every piece of skin that was available, and that was a lot. She’d even went ahead and left her midnight hair flow down over her shoulders naturally, blanketing her chest and drawing the eye to her bosom. 

The only two people in the room that didn’t enjoy what they saw were her parents and every female venthyr present. Odette even caught the faintest  _ slut  _ and  _ whore  _ being whispered across the hall, surely not the only slurs that would be thrown around before the party’s end. But everyone else was awestruck, completely drunk off the visage of the young lady.

But the Master was the most charmed of them all. Nothing could stop the effect Odette had on Site Denathrius, and the fear that was beginning to well up within her only increased dramatically as the Master strode up to her, never taking his gaze from her body. He looked at her like all men did: with insatiable desire. 

Soon the Master was right in front of Odette, who was reluctant to meet his gaze at first. 

Maybe she could turn the tables in her favor. 

Maybe this was her chance to  _ get the fuck out of there _ . 

Her glimmering red eyes eventually did leave the floor and lock with the Master’s, in a way that Odette had found expertise in when it came to alluring men. 

“You’re just as fair as they said,” came the Master’s pur, directly into Odette’s ear, but she could hear the extra intentions in his voice. He wanted her the way a starving lion wanted meat. “I wonder if you’re just as cursed, as well.”

So he had heard. Yes, it was possible that he knew how much she whored herself, but it was clear now that he knew much more than that. As a response, Odette raised her head and whispered back,

“Only one way to find out.”

That was it. That’s all that Denathrius needed to hear. He straightened himself up and cleared his throat to address the citizens gathered around. 

“As you may not know, I’ve been in search of someone. Someone who can assist me in securing my name and my status as your Master. And that is the reasoning of my presence at this truly despicable party.” While he spat the last words, he glowered at the hosts, who hung their heads rightfully in shame. “I’ve found what I’m looking for. Please, if you care about your dignity, follow me back to the castle, where a much more suitable gathering shall take place of this…  _ catastrophe _ .”

Denathrius walked off, waving his hand at the Lord Chamberlain before disappearing towards the front foyer. His acolyte turned to the young lady, then slowly approached her. 

“This way, my lady.”

The way he spoke her title was enough to make her cringe. But she had a way out of this wretched life, and she intended fully on taking it. 

Walking passed the guests revealed many things to Odette: the jealous faces of all the strange men that were upset they couldn’t have their way with Lady Odette, the apprehensive expressions of the women who had to watch their beloved “master” choose another woman he’d never met, the low but please looks her parents shot her way…

And Theotar. 

She hadn’t noticed him at all. She was certain he wasn’t invited after the last party. But seeing him made Odette’s gut twist and squirm into painful knots. The way he looked at her, lost and defeated, killed every light that she had burning within. 

And that was the last she saw of him. Sold off to a man she didn’t love, in the face of the one she did, sent to rule over the people of Revendreth. 


End file.
